Recently, I was lucky enough to have a Saturday morning all to myself. The TV was on, providing some much needed background noise while I went about my business. There was a program on-air in which they showcased unusual or extreme collections people had accumulated. I’m aware that many people have collections and some can get out of hand faster than you realize. When you stop and think, you may be surprised how much money you can have sitting around and not really know it.
This TV show sucked me in. Not being able to draw my attention away, a guest of the show explained that he collected Marvel comic books and figurines. He recently spent $1,500 on one comic book because of this inclination that it was rare. As I sat in my living room totally engaged, I thought, “This guy is crazy! I mean, $1,500 on a comic book!?” The host then proclaimed that he would value the comic book at nearly $10,000.
Another guest of the show had an entire room of her home dedicated to her Barbie doll collection. During a rough patch of her life, she began purchasing the dolls. Finding joy in her search for unique (and of course, never opened) dolls, her collection grew rapidly. She knew that she had spent quite a bit of money building her collection and was thrilled to find out the current value was thousands more than originally invested.
After watching a second episode, the insurance agent within me woke up. I thought “WOW, I hope these people have enough insurance coverage if something were to happen. I wonder if they even know if they’re protected.” I work with people on a daily basis to insure items like jewelry, artwork and gun collections but I’ve never had anyone ask about their comics or Barbie dolls.
The moral of this story is, regardless of what you collect, it might be worth far more than you think. The best course of action is to have your collection appraised. Once you know what size goldmine you’ve discovered under your roof, make sure to talk to your insurance agent. Double check your coverage, making sure it’s the right amount and type to protect your collection.
